Tag: nature

West of the Wharf

Posted on March 27, 2013 by Nick Roberts

Click on the image to open it in another window.

This image was taken on the west end of the Louisville riverfront between the Third Street Wharf and the McAlpine Locks. The source files are all bracketed HDR images that were merged in NIK HDR Efex Pro 2 where they were first tone mapped before returning the merged file to Aperture 3 and then processing it in OnOne Perfect Effects where I applied a slight vignette.

Click on the image to open it in another window.

This image is from under Interstate 64 just past 6th Street. The view is looking east toward the Kennedy Bridge. Once again NIK HDR Efex Pro 2 was used to merge the three bracketed files. After that was done I opened it in OnOne Perfect Effects where I experimented with stacking several different effects to bring out the colors and contrast in the scene. I really should write down what I use but many times I am experimenting and go through many different filters before settling on a particular one. One feature I really like about using the OnOne Perfect Effects filters is that they can be stacked and that I can control the amount of strength I want by varying the opacity of each one and stacking several filters together using the layers feature. I then finished the image in my normal way using Aperture 3.

Click on the image to open it in another window.

This is an image from a merged bracket set processed in NIK HDR Efex Pro 2 and finished in Aperture 3. The bridges in the background are K&I Railroad bridges that connect west Louisville to New Albany, Indiana.

Click on the image to open it in another window.

This final image is also Processed in NIK HDR Efex Pro 2, OnOne Perfect Effects and Aperture 3.

Alabama Morning

Posted on March 16, 2013 by Nick Roberts

Click on the image to enlarge it in another window.

These images are from my trip down to Alabama a few weeks back. While exploring the countryside I came upon this old log building that has become a piece of Americana. The owner of the property is obviously into collecting old signs and old gas pumps. The sky was full of clouds that were remnants of a thunderstorm that went through the night before while off to the east the sun was breaking through and illuminating the cabin and the surrounding area. In the distance the sky and horizon were still dark and foreboding. The light was bright enough that I was able to handhold the shots and that allowed me to move quickly around the scene.

I processed this image using NIK HDR Efex Pro 2 for the merging of my three frame bracket set. My bracket set was -2, 0 and +2 EV. After I tone mapped the image I made some adjustments to vibrance and contrast in Aperture 3 and then I took the image into OnOne Perfect Effects 4 where I applied a vignette using the Big Softy preset.

Click on the image to enlarge it in another window.

This is another image from the same shoot. I loved the way the sun was lighting the buildings and the field around them while in the distance the horizon and sky were still dark. I followed the same basic procedure for processing this image as I did in the one above but I spent a little more time in OnOne Perfect Photo 7 playing around with Perfect Effects where I once again added the vignette using Big Softy preset as well as experimenting with some of the other adjustments that Perfect Effects has available.

Click on the image to enlarge it in another window.

In this image the sun went behind some clouds and it really softened the light. I shot a handheld three frame bracket at -2, 0 and +2 EV and merged them in NIK HDR Efex Pro 2 before taking the merged image back into Aperture 3 for final processing. The change in the quality of the light creates an entirely different feel to the scene and I didn’t feel that Perfect Effects 4 would be of any benefit on this image so I finished it with Aperture 3.

Rusted Relics

Posted on March 3, 2013 by Nick Roberts

Click on the image to open a larger version in another window.

While I was down in Alabama I took a drive out past the place where my Grandparents lived. The old house is gone now and I drove a little further down the highway to see if there was anything that might make a good photo along it. I came upon a log cabin, sitting in the middle of a field, that is covered in old metal signs and has several old gas pumps in the yard. This image is a detail of one of the pumps.

As is my practice today I shot a three bracket set of images for HDR processing. Another advantage of shooting brackets is the near certainty that one of the images will be a good exposure if I need something quick for a deadline. I don’t often need to do that but it sure is handy when the need arises.

The first thing I did was merge the three frames in NIK HDR eFex Pro 2 for tone mapping and detail adjustment. I used one of the Realistic presets as my starting point. I then took the HDR image into OnOne Perfect Photo 6 where I used a few different effects to add a vignette and enhanced some of the color. On e of the nice things about Perfect Effects is that it allows me to create layers and apply the effects in varying amounts. By stacking a few effects and adjusting the amount of each one from zero to 100% it is possible to get the feeling I’m looking for. After I had the image nearly finished I returned it to Aperture 3 where I adjusted the shadows and highlight, contrast and sharpened the image.

Click on the image to open a larger version in another window.

This bird house seemed such a great subject with it’s weathered texture and the sign below it. I ran it through the same basic process and settled on this final version. I’m glad I started exploring the OnOne Perfect Photo 6 Suite again. In the future I will be using it more often when I want to convey more emotion than using only HDR techniques affords me.

Snow in Waterfront Park

Posted on February 21, 2013 by Nick Roberts

Click on an image to open larger in another window.

No HDR here just a good exposure processed in Aperture 3. This image relies on composition as it’s strong suit. The repetition of curves in the ramp, ramp shadow and shoreline are set against the strong geometry of the bridge, concrete veranda and the skyline as well as the linear pattern of the trees in the swing garden.

Louisville Waterfront Park in the Snow #2

This image is also a single frame without any HDR processing applied. It was also processed exclusively in Aperture 3. Once again the composition is balanced between the strong linear elements of the concrete veranda and the rows of trees in the swing garden set against the curves of the shoreline, ramp and the ramp’s shadow.

Snowy Day in Waterfront Park

Posted on February 17, 2013 by Nick Roberts

Click on any image to open it in a new window.

As a rule Louisville doesn’t get a lot of snow and this winter has been one where we have had maybe 5 or 6 snows. The weather here has changed a great deal from when I was a boy growing up here in the 1950s. Back then we would get really cold winters with snow from November thru April. We could go sledding for days on end and once the snows fell they stayed around for a long time. That has all changed in the past 10 or 15 years and now we seldom have a snow that stays around more than a few days.

Last Wednesday we had snow showers in the morning and by afternoon the temperature was back in the mid 40s. I was in town visiting at my friend Chuck Rubin’s used camera store when I looked outside to see a heavy wet snow falling. I jumped at a chance to photograph Waterfront Park in the snow and immediately headed down to the park. I decided to shoot from the Big Four Bridge, (I’m sure everyone who reads this blog is surprised to hear that LOL), since the snow was really coming down and was covering the ground quickly. Later that afternoon the temperature was back in the upper 40s and the snow was gone as quickly as it arrived

I shot everything in bracket sets of +2, 0 and -2 EV so that I could process them as HDR images. The light was fairly bright so I kept my ISO set at 200 which resulted in fairly fast shutter speeds. The snow was so dense that it rendered itself in gray tones and bright highlights much as clouds do when the sun is in and out. I used NIK HDR Efex Pro 2 to merge the frames and created a couple of my own presets starting with the Deep #2 preset as my basis. I was able then to move through the several merged sets in a little less time than trying to adjust each merged set individually. Even with that I still had to make adjustments to my preset depending on the balance of light and dark in the individual HDR images.

After completing my initial processing in NIK HDR Efex Pro 2; I opened each one in Aperture 3 where I completed the adjustments for exposure, contrast, detail, vibrance, and sharpening. I also did a small amount of spot removal where individual snowflakes rendered themselves as sensor spots sometimes do. I did not attempt to remove every snowflake’s shadow from the sky because part of what I wanted to convey was how large and dense they were.

Below you will find more from that day’s photo shoot. I hope you enjoy them and will comment where you think appropriate. I converted some of the images to black and white after merging them in NIK HDR Efex Pro 2 to create a different version that was more about contrast and form than color.

Solitary Snow Runnerx — Solitary Snow Runner

Snowy Swing Garden #1xx — Snowy Swing Garden #1

Snow on Deck #2 B&W Version

Speeddemon2 Photography

Fine Art Photography

Tag: nature

West of the Wharf

Alabama Morning

Rusted Relics

Snow in Waterfront Park

Snowy Day in Waterfront Park